Barre
It’s more about posture than pirouetting. Here’s how to plié for physical and mental strength
Words Tom Rowley.
Photograph Stocksy
Barre has exploded in popularity over the past decade and it’s helping women build strength and get in fantastic shape - it also has a surprisingly erotic past. Originating in the 60s with the Lotte Berk Technique, much of its marketing was bolstered by a promise to improve sexual prowess.
‘Barre attracted all the movers and shakers of the day, including Britt Ekland, Barbra Streisand and Joan Collins,’ says Vicki Anstey, the UK’s leading barre expert and founder of Barreworks in London. ‘The barre movement has gained huge traction and become enhanced and modernised since the days of Lotte Berk.’